SoW Name:____________________________________________

Modifiers:A modifier is:___________________________________________________________

Louis, this is the beginning of a friendship.Louis, this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

I met a girl, and I asked her for some news.I met a girl who sang the blues, and I asked her for some happy news.

Examples:

Misplaced modifiers: What is the difference in the meanings of these sentences? A. The dog was chasing the boy with the spiked collar. B. The dog with the spiked collar was chasing the boy.

What clause needs to be moved? Draw an arrow to the place it should go? Hint: put the modifier as close to the word being modified as possible.

Smashed flat by a passing truck, Big Dog sniffed at what was left of a half-eaten hamburger.

The woman walked the dog in purple suede cowboy boots.

We saw several monkeys on vacation in Mexico.

Marin watched a radiant sunset climbing a hill.

Bruised and beaten by a better fighter, the little girl hugged her father after the boxing match.

Dangling modifiers: Which of these two sentences is clearer? Why? A. While reading the newspaper, the cat jumped on the table.

B. While reading the newspaper, I saw the cat jump on the table.

What information are we missing? Re-write the sentence to include what is being modified.

Standing on the balcony, the ocean looked so beautiful.

Looking out the airplane window, the volcano seemed ready to erupt.

Find and fix the dangling or misplaced modifiers. Underline the misplaced modifiers and draw an arrow to where they belong. Highlight the dangling modifiers and add the noun being modified.

Pygmies hunted elephants armed with spears.

While doing the dishes, a mouse ran across the floor.

I gave olives to my friend that I stabbed with my fork.

Smashed beyond repair, Bert saw his watch lying on the court.

The burglar was about 30 years old, white, 5′ 10″, with wavy hair weighing about 150 pounds.

The guest speaker had dedicated his new book to his dog who was an archaeologist.

The library has several books about dinosaurs in our school.

I glimpsed a rat sorting the recyclable materials.

We saw several blue jays looking out our front window.

Having been thrown in the air, the dog caught the stick.

Don’t try to pat the dog on the porch that is growling.

The smoke alarm went off while cooking my dinner.

Standing on the dock, the boat didn’t look safe to the sailors.

From: https://webapps.towson.edu/ows/moduledangling.htm

-Extra practices are available if you click on the link above. The information below is from that link.

Misplaced Modifiers

A misplaced modifier is a word, phrase, or clause that is improperly separated from the word it modifies / describes. 

Because of the separation, sentences with this error often sound awkward, ridiculous, or confusing.  Furthermore, they can be downright illogical. 

   Example

         

The example above suggests that a gold man owns a watch.

Misplaced modifiers can usually be corrected by moving the modifier to a more sensible place in the sentence, generally next to the word it modifies. 

   Example

        

Now it is the watch that is gold.

 

There are several kinds of misplaced modifiers:

1. Misplaced adjectives are incorrectly separated from the nouns they modify and almost always distort the intended meaning.

     Example 1

        

  Correct the error by placing the adjective next to the noun it modifies.

     Corrected

        

 

     Example 2

        

   Corrected

       

Sentences like these are common in everyday speech and ordinarily cause their listeners no trouble.  However, they are quite imprecise and, therefore, should have NO place in your writing.

2. Placement of adverbs can also change meaning in sentences.

     For example, the sentences below illustrate how the placement of just can change the sentence's meaning.

    Just means only John was picked, no one else:

        

 

    Just means that John was picked now:

        

 

  Just means that John hosted only the program, nothing else:

        

   

Each of these sentences says something logical but quite different, and its correctness depends upon what the writer has in mind.

Often, misplacing an adverb not only alters the intended meaning, but also creates a sentence whose meaning is highly unlikely or completely ridiculous.

     This sentence, for example, suggests that we brought a lunch slowly:

         

     To repair the meaning, move the adverb slowly so that it is near ate.

        

           

Watch out for adverbs such as only, just, nearly, merely, and almost.  They are often misplaced and cause an unintended meaning.

    This sentence, for example, means that I only contributed the money:

                                   

      Repaired, however, the sentence means that I contributed only $10.00.

          

Like adjectives, adverbs are commonly misplaced in everyday speech, and may not cause listeners difficulty.  However, such sentences are quite imprecise and, therefore,  should have NO place in your writing.  

Now click on the link below to complete Exercise 1.

  Link to Exercise 1

3. Misplaced phrases  may cause a sentence to sound awkward and may create a meaning that does not make sense.

   

The problem sentences below contain misplaced phrases   that  modify the wrong nouns. 

To fix the errors and clarify the meaning, put the phrases next to the noun they are supposed to modify. 

 

    Example 1 (a buyer with leather seats?)

        

  Corrected

        

 

   Example 2 (a corner smoking pipes?)

            

    Corrected

        

    

    Example 3 (a house made of barbed wire?)

        

     Corrected

        

Click on the link below to complete Exercise 2.

Link to Exercise 2

4.  Misplaced clauses may cause a sentence to sound awkward and may create a meaning that does not make sense.

The problem sentences below contain misplaced clauses   that  modify the wrong nouns. 

To fix the errors and clarify the meaning, put the clauses next to the noun they are supposed to modify. 

    Example 1 ( a buttered woman?)

        

    Corrected

        

    Example 2 (a hamper that Ralph wore?)

        

    Corrected

        

 

Be careful!  In correcting a misplaced modifier, don't create a sentence with two possible meanings.

    Example

  

Problem:  Did the teacher say this on Monday or will she return the essays on Monday?)  

  Correction #1  (meaning the essays will be returned on Monday)

    

  Correction #2  (meaning that the teacher spoke on Monday)

    

  Click on the link below to complete Exercise 3.

Link to Exercise 3

DANGLING MODIFIERS                                 

 A dangling modifier is a phrase or clause that is not clearly and logically related to the word or words it modifies  (i.e. is placed next to).

    Two notes about dangling modifiers:

Unlike a misplaced modifier, a dangling modifier cannot be corrected by simply moving it to a different place in a sentence.

In most cases, the dangling modifier appears at the beginning of the sentence, although it can also come at the end.

Sometimes the dangling modifier error occurs because the sentence fails to specify anything to which the modifier can refer.  

    Example  1

        

This sentence does not specify who is looking toward the west.  In fact, there is nothing at all in the sentence to which the modifying phrase looking toward the west can logically refer.  Since the modifier, looking toward the west,  is sitting next to the funnel shaped cloud, the sentence suggests that the cloud is doing the looking.  

Example 2

        

This sentence means that my mother enrolled in medical when she was nine years old!

At other times the dangling modifier is placed next to the wrong noun or noun substitute.  

    Example 1

           Because of the placement of walking to the movies, this sentence suggests that the cloudburst is walking to the movies even though a possible walker - Jim - is mentioned later.

    Example 2

        

Since having been fixed the night before is placed next to Priscilla, the sentence means that Priscilla was fixed the night before.  

  As the above examples show, dangling modifiers result in inaccurate and sometimes ludicrous statements.               

 

How to correct dangling modifiers

 

Dangling modifiers may be corrected in two general ways.

 

Correction Method #1

1. Leave the modifier as it is.2. Change the main part of the sentence so that it begins with the term actually modified.  3. This change will put the modifier next to the term it modifies.

  Thus, this dangling modifier

        

  may be corrected to

        

  Now the sentence means that I was looking toward the west.

 

Using the same method, this dangling modifier

                         

  may be corrected to

      

  Now the sentence means that Jim was drenched by the cloudburst.   

Click on the link below to complete Exercise 4.

Link to Exercise 4

Correction Method #2

1. Change the dangling modifier phrase to a subordinate clause, creating a subject and verb.2. Leave the rest of the sentence as it is.

 

  Thus, the dangling modifier

             

may be corrected to

            

  Now the sentence means that I  (not my mother!) was nine years old when my mother enrolled in medical school.

 

Using the same method, the dangling modifier

        

may be corrected to 

          

  Now the sentence means that the car (not Priscilla!) was fixed.